This story is an unofficial story based, without permission, on the Warhammer/Warhammer 40,000 intellectual property owned by Games Workshop Ltd.
Gun fire came from within the smoke filled burning city of Volcane, killing the first two Crimson Fists instantly.
"Get to cover," bellowed Syakotus, dodging bolter fire, ducking down behind the half destroyed tower that stood before them.
The Crimson Fists dashed to the smashed tower and its half broken wall for cover. Korde crept up besides Syakotus.
"Your orders, Captain?" he asked.
Without warning, the streaking sound of a rocket swept past their heads. The blast exploded besides them with a deafening sound, the explosion tossed the bricks of the tower in the air and across the battered street, along with Syakotus and Korde. The shock from the explosion slammed them hard against the cracked pavement.
Covered in dust and bruised from the impact, Syakotus pulled himself up. Levelling off, he raised his power sword high in the air.
"Charge!"
The thirty Crimson Fists leapt forward in a frenzied charge, led by Syakotus.
Korde, clenching his Thunder Hammer tightly whilst swinging it gently, vibrating with its power field, into two approaching Cultists, killing them both instantly from the sheer strength of his swing.
The Veteran Sergeant jumped up and down, swinging his Thunder Hammer from side to side, knocking adversary after adversary down in pools of blood. None could match his prowess for the sheer speed of his actions, swinging one second then parrying the next, yet without breaking a sweat.
Frieh, Judson, Moref and Phanus went down on one knee with bolters poised forwards, pulsing their fingers across the triggers then letting round after round pump from the barrels of their guns into cultist after cultist.
Behind them, stood in steadfast positions with bolters poised forwards were Linnix, Horton, Niven and Damson, also pumping round after round, into the oncoming mob.
The whole of squad Gevedin fought as one, slashing their chain swords into the flesh of the weak armoured Cultists. The blood from their victims spilled out across the broken roads and onto their armour, staining the dark blue ceramite with lashes of it.
Xaros and his squad kept close to Syakotus, firing round after round at the remaining Cultists who dared get close enough to them.
Leaping over a pile of bricks and gravel, Syakotus jumped into several Chaos Cultists, swinging his power sword about violently, cutting them open. The blood from his fallen victims sprayed across his bare face and the chest plate of his armour.
One cultist crept up behind him with a las pistol aimed at the back of his head, but was not quick enough with the trigger. At the sound of crunching feet over the broken gravel, he turned to see the face of Kordes Thunder Hammer smashed his skull open.
Syakotus spun around quickly to retaliate, yet he stood down as quickly, seeing Korde stood over the corpse, holding his Thunder Hammer in one hand and his bolter-plasma combi in the other.
"Good work, Sergeant. You may have saved my life."
Syakotus stepped atop of the broken bricks to survey the area for himself. He admired the sight of his three squads, standing over their dead victims. The city was all smashed apart from the incursion of Night Lords, and those heretics who followed the banner of Chaos.
Syakotus looked on at the city as it lay in ruins of rubble. He sniffed up the stench of death, the stench of Chaos. Every direction he looked there were smashed buildings, many of which remained covered in flames, burning high. The destruction from the large thunderous lascannons had levelled most of the streets, leaving a very few buildings still standing and only a few no higher than three stories in height. Syakotus climbed up higher on the broken rubble. Jumping on to a half standing wall, laced with blast holes, he noticed the city's cathedral still standing and almost un-scathed from the massacre. Jumping down from the wall, he looked down at Korde.
"Is it me, or was that just a little too easy old friend?" he mused.
"Maybe the Night Lords retreated at the sight of us, Captain," said Phanus, with a slight chuckle, holding his flamer from squad Korde and stepping between his Sergeant and Captain.
"I doubt that Phanus, that is merely wishful thinking." Syakotus returned, turning to face Korde again. "Take your squad to the cathedral. Try to hold the position if you can, it would serve us well as a command centre. I suspect that they are doing the same, plus we may need somewhere to fall back to."
"Aye, Captain." replied the veteran Sergeant, as his squad followed him off into the smoke filled city.
"Gevedin, take your assault squad and fall back to the bridge. The traitorous scum must not be allowed to leave Volcane, no matter the cost."
Xaros gazed upon the Night Lords' Thunderhawks "What of them, Captain?"
"It will have to be that excuse for a human, Commissar Fenersons', problem. I have no doubt that he will not hesitate to use his basilisk artillery to gun them down from these smoke filled skies."
Fenerson watched from the cliffs edge through his binoculars. The Crimson Fists spread out from the bridge's entrance.
"You should watch them, Tyde, you may learn a thing or two from their tactics," he said, taunting the Lieutenant.
Tyde said nothing to retaliate, he just clenched his las pistol tightly in his hand, reminding himself that the Commissar was his ally and not his enemy.
"Tyde, order your Leman Russ cannons to shoot those Thunderhawks down," the Commissar said, pointing at the fact they were heading towards them.
"Sergeant Masson, open fire at our oncoming adversaries," he voxed to the tank Sergeant.
Suddenly the sound of cannon fire rocked the ground in heavy quakes as the Leman Russ tanks opened fire at the Night Lords' oncoming Thunderhawks.
Dark smoke consumed the sky with a burst of yellow, followed by the sound of a thunderous crackle as one of the Thunderhawks combusted across the sky.
Both the Commissar and Tyde watched in horror as Raptors emerged from the black smoke of the fallen Thunderhawk.
"Destroy the other before it reaches us, Sergeant," Tyde voxed quickly.
Watching the cannons of the Leman Russ's destroy the second Thunderhawk, then watching more Raptors disembark the burning craft, he felt his stomach clench with anxiety at the mere thought of those abominable creatures. Yet to his relief they seemed to turn about, back to the city of Volcane.
Syakotus turned his head back to the bridge at the sight of the destruction of the two Night Lords' Thunderhawks. He raised his sword in cheer with his brothers to be cut of by what can only be described as a high pitched screeching from above.
Necus bellowed "Raptors!" as a plasma blast from above took his life.
Syakotus held his arm upwards towards them. Clenching his fist tight, pushing on the trigger in his palm, he let out a burst of auto fire from the storm bolter strapped to his wrist.
Sergeants Xaros, Cuoson and Drakes held their bolters upwards as the Raptors pounced on them from above with barely any warning. Cuoson tried to hit his oncoming attacker but lacked the speed of his adversary as it landed forward of him, slamming the butt of it's chain axe at his face and thus was knocked to the floor from were he stood.
"Cuoson are you ok?" bellowed Drakes. He was trying to get to him for aid but was cut from his legs with his upper torso flung violently forwards across the road side in the attempt. One of the attacking Raptors had swooped down low at him, slicing through his legs with its power sword. With a gush of blood spilling out across the floor, the Raptor held his power sword over Drakes mortally wounded body to plunge down into his spine, but was cut open by heavy bolter fire from across the road were Icyus stood. Xaros looked across, training his bolter forwards, and lunged forward of Drakes, but was blocked by another Raptor taking a swing at him with both of its lightening claws. He jumped over the fallen Drakes, swinging his chain sword into the Raptor, cutting into its vile armour and splashing black blood across the front of his helmet. Yet another swooped in behind him, mimicking his actions. Xaros had no choice but to face his newer adversary, hoping he had wounded the other enough for it to stay down long enough to slay the newer.
Yet his luck had run out. Three more Raptors swooped in upon him, cutting into his chest deep enough to slice the ceramite of his armour and slice through his mortal flesh. Xaros dropped to his knees, feeling the pain consume his body, dropping his bolter to the ground. Defying gravity with one hand, holding himself up, the Raptor cut through the back of his neck whilst screeching out loudly in a chuckle at his pain. Moments later, his head slipped away from his upper torso.
Cuoson watched in horror as the blood of Xaros' remains dashed across the Raptors and the ground beneath him.
Drakes rolled over in excruciating pain from the loss of both his legs, clenching his bolter and firing on full auto at the butchering Raptors, also giving Cuoson's time to stagger up.
Two of the Raptors fell in an array of bolter shells splitting into their flesh, whilst the third swooped over to Drakes, slamming its cursed chain sword in to his spine and pinning him down.
Syakotus dashed over to Cuoson.
"Come, brother, they are lost. We need to fall back or we will join them in death," he said, grabbing hold of Cuoson's blood stained shoulder using his strength to yank him back from the blood frenzied Raptors.
Len Ruo gripped his flamer, releasing a heavy burst of flames into the Raptors, killing one in his attack. Without warning, five more dropped behind him; three with lightening claws and two with chain axes. Len Ruo spun again, quick enough with his flamer, hitting the first to stab at him with hot flames. It fell forwards, screeching like a hungry newborn child.
Icyus jumped the other at Len Ruo's side, armed with his heavy bolter.
"Die, incarnations of the abyss," he muttered as his finger squeezed the trigger, killing all the Raptors forward of them. One by one they fell to their deaths, their flesh pulled apart by the onslaught of bolter shells. Black blood consumed the ground about them.
Two more Raptors dropped down from the smoke filled skies, firing plasma blasts at Icyus's feet, only adding to his frenzied rage. Again he let loose another round of heavy gun fire at them, cutting them both open.
The first was ripped apart, screeching for breath as it was blown back against the smashed walls, of the dirt ridden buildings, then the other dropped to its death in screaming agony. Syakotus flung himself into the remaining three, taking them by surprise. Slicing his power sword in mad fury, he decapitated their heads, leaving a mess of blood and guts across the broken street.
Cuoson's stood at his side, reloading another bolter clip, looking in anticipation for more to come.
"I think we won this round, brothers." Syakotus said, addressing the remaining Crimson Fists.
"Captain, there are more." Icyus grumbled, spinning round and clenching his heavy bolter with pride.
Hatal and Radeka went down on one knee with their bolters trained forwards, aiming towards the oncoming Cultists rushing towards them. With the crack of gun fire, the Cultists began shooting their auto guns at Syakotus and the Crimson Fists, the bullets merely bounced off their armour.
"Open fire, shoot those bastards down!" bellowed Syakotus, with the sudden wind echoing his voice.
Hatal and Radeka opened fire on full auto, their bolter shells flung into the Cultists creating a shower of raining blood with the Cultists being ripped to pieces. Within moments they'd all fallen to their deaths.
Syakotus walked forwards, taking a look at the shadows from the distance of the half standing buildings.
Suddenly, with less then a seconds warning, the dark sky was lit up in an array of red and yellow streaks of flames, giving Syakotus chance to see that they were no bolts of fire. Gaping, his eyes wide open, he saw the closer the screeching arrows were rockets before he had the chance to warn the others. The road that they all stood on collapse in on itself, dragging them down with the blast, toppling down below, only to be crush by the nearby unstable buildings crashing down onto them.
Then one last explosion shot upwards with a large burst of ash clouds, dropping back down like snow, covering the immediate area into a large vapour cloud. The explosion also burst some of the nearby gas pipes, forcing a new and even bigger explosion. The remaining Cultists in the area were blown to pieces, or killed by the circularised explosions being carried further with the sudden blast winds. Those Cultists that remained unscathed by the destruction suffocated to their deaths, chocking in agonising pain.
Hive World Terra